United Way of the Ocoee Region logo

United Way of the Ocoee Region

Public charity · Grantmaker Cleveland, TN EIN: 62-0548418 Website

United Way of the Ocoee Region is a public charity based in Cleveland, Tennessee, that identifies community needs, brings organizations together, and invests in programs serving Bradley and Polk Counties. It was formed in 1971 and supports work addressing immediate needs, poverty, children’s opportunities, and community health.

Key facts about United Way of the Ocoee Region

In short: United Way of the Ocoee Region gave $1.6M across 26 grants in 2025 (avg $62K), mostly in Tennessee. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.

EIN
62-0548418
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$1,624,630
Grants made (2025)
26
Average grant
$62,486
Median grant
$20,000
New grantees (estimate)
0% first-time grantees (0 of 26, 2025)
Total assets
$33,896,576
Primary geography
Tennessee (99% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Accepts unsolicited proposals
Yes
Deadline
The listed deadline for United Way Impact Funding is December 5, 2026.
Next open deadline
December 5, 2026 (United Way Impact Funding)

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology). Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990 · View filing

Total Assets

$33.9M

+4.8% YoY

Annual Giving

$1.6M

-8.1% YoY

Grant Count

26

-7.1% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$62K

-1.0% YoY

Is United Way of the Ocoee Region open to new grantees?

0%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 0 of 26 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. How we count

  • 100% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−20%). Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2019–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The organization’s stated mission is to identify community needs, facilitate collaboration, and maximize resources to positively impact its community and surrounding areas. Its website identifies four impact areas: Meet Immediate Basic Needs, Pathways to a Healthy Community, Give Kids an Equal Chance, and Break the Cycle of Poverty. The 2025–2026 request for proposals specified Stable Housing, Childcare Access, Healthcare Access, and Mental Healthcare & Substance Abuse Support as areas for proposed programs.

In 2025, the largest listed grant went to Karis Community Health, whose stated mission is to provide dental and primary medical care to uninsured adults at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. Other recipients illustrate the range of supported work: The Caring Place describes providing basic resources to people experiencing poverty in Bradley County; City Fields describes neighborhood revitalization and development; and the Bradley Cleveland Public Education Foundation describes supporting students and teachers in 26 schools. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not the funder’s.

Grantmaking

In filing year 2025, United Way of the Ocoee Region reported 26 grants totaling $1,624,630. Grant amounts ranged from $10,000 to $380,000, with a median of $20,000. The largest awards included $380,000 to Karis Community Health, $236,000 to Boys and Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region, $173,500 to The Caring Place, $150,000 to City Fields, and $85,000 to Family Resource Agency.

The funder’s website describes an annual competitive allocation process involving community-needs identification, a request for proposals, letters of intent, full applications, impact-panel recommendations, and final funding decisions. It accepts unsolicited requests through this process. Applicants are directed to review the RFP and funding workshop materials, create or log in to an e-CImpact account, and submit a Letter of Intent; selected applicants proceed to a full proposal. The website says proposals should fit an impact area and create long-term community change. The 2025–2026 RFP invited 501(c)(3) agencies serving Bradley and Polk Counties and required, among other items, proof of tax-exempt status, an audit or approved financials, board information, outcome-tracking capacity, and participation in partner roundtables if available.

Review Cycle

The listed deadline for United Way Impact Funding is December 5, 2026. The separate 2026–2027 cycle page gives a Letter of Intent deadline of December 19, 2025; that deadline has passed.

Open Grants

1 open opportunity from United Way of the Ocoee Region

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The organization identifies Bradley and Polk Counties in southeastern Tennessee as its service area. In 2025, 99% of reported grant dollars went to recipients in Tennessee and 1% to recipients in Georgia.

Grant Distribution by State

2states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 26 itemized grants.

Cities

ClevelandChattanoogaHixsonAlpharettaNashvilleGoodlettsvilleKnoxville

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$1M$2M$3M34 grants2019 29 grants2020 31 grants2021 29 grants2022 25 grants2023 28 grants2024 26 grants2025

From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $1.4M (2020) to $2.1M (2019). In 2025 it made 26 grants totaling $1.6M.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Karis Community Health: $380KKaris Community Health$380KBoys and Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region: $236KBoys and Girls Clubs of theOcoee Region$236KThe Caring Place: $174KThe Caring Place$174KCity Fields: $150KCity Fields$150KFamily Resource Agency: $85KFamily Resource Agency$85KYMCA of Metropolitan Chattanooga: $80KYMCA of MetropolitanChattanooga$80KBradley Cleveland Public: $68KBradley Cleveland Public$68KLegal Aid of East TN: $62KLegal Aid of East TN$62KThe Hope Center Inc: $48KThe Hope Center Inc$48KCourt Appointed Special ADV: $45KCourt Appointed Special ADV$45K

The largest 2025 recipient was Karis Community Health ($380K). Together the top 10 received $1.3M.

Grant Size Distribution

139 grants across all recorded years

96<$50K21$50–100K14$100–250K8$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 96 grants of 139 (69%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Karis Community Health Cleveland, TNCommunity Health$380,000
Boys and Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region Cleveland, TNPartner Agency$236,000
The Caring Place Cleveland, TNCommunity Health/Parnter Agency$173,500
City Fields Cleveland, TNPartner Agency$150,000
Family Resource Agency Cleveland, TNPartner Agency$85,000
YMCA of Metropolitan Chattanooga Cleveland, TNPartner Agency$80,000
Bradley Cleveland Public Cleveland, TNCommunity Health$68,000
Legal Aid of East TN Chattanooga, TNPartner Agency$62,000
The Hope Center Inc Cleveland, TNCommunity Health$48,000
Court Appointed Special ADV Cleveland, TNPartner Agency$45,000

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants reported
2025 $33,896,576 $3,626,812 $3,624,087 $1,624,630
2024 $32,338,920 $3,015,704 $3,694,365 $1,767,555
2023 $31,354,389 $2,829,974 $3,696,435 $1,657,907

The grant totals shown are accompanied by 26 grants in 2025, 28 in 2024, and 25 in 2023. The filing describes monitoring procedures for endowment grants: grantees submit budgets for approval and financial information to support draw requests.

Revenue
Expenses
Net Investment Income
$0$2M$4M$6M$8M2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$33,896,576$32,338,920$31,354,389
Revenue$3,626,812$3,015,704$2,829,974
Expenses$3,624,087$3,694,365$3,696,435
Net Investment Income$2,093,055$1,091,521$857,606

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS June 1, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS August 3, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS August 15, 2023)
  4. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 29, 2020)
  5. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS September 25, 2024)
  6. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS September 30, 2025)
  7. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS August 6, 2026)
  8. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Bill Martin as chair, Dr. Rubi Porter as secretary, and Mike Griffin, Bruce Bradford, Dr. Linda Cash, Nancy Casson, Brenda Choate, Ken Dew, Matt Jenne, and Chris Newton as directors. The organization’s website lists Stephanie Linkous as president and CEO.

United Way of the Ocoee Region is led by Stephanie Linkous, President on every filing since 2019; 2 of 17 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Stephanie Linkous

    President

    On filings since 2019

    40 hrs/week

    $96K (2020) → $139K (2025)

  • Bill Martin

    Chair

    Director → Treasurer, 2020

    Treasurer → Chair, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Andy Williams

    Director

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Brenda Knight Choate

    Director

    Immediate Past Board Chair & Cit Chair → Immediate Past Board Chair, 2024

    Immediate Past Board Chair → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Bruce Bradford

    Director

    Director → Vice Chair, 2021

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Chris Newton

    Director

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Cindy Slater

    Director

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Erika Moore

    Director

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Linda Cash

    Director

    Director → Vice Chair, 2021

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Matt Jenne

    Director

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Mike Griffin

    Director

    Chairman → Past Chair, 2020

    Past Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Nancy Casson

    Director

    Vice Chair → Director, 2022

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Adam Osborne

    Director

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Ken Dew

    Director

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jennifer Sheeley

    Vice President of Finance

    New on the 2025 filing

    40 hrs/week

    $71K (2025)

  • Matthew Tolbert

    Immediate Past Board Chair

    Director → Chair, 2022

    Chair → Immediate Past Board Chair, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Rubi Porter

    Secretary

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (44)
  • Former: Tanya Mazzolini (2023–2024) — CFO
  • Former: Art Rhodes (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Barbara Stone (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Bill Moats (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Carolyn Jackson (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Danny Bradley (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Gary Farlow (2019–2021) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Janice Baker (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Joe Fivas (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Keith Barrett (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Ralph Baldwin (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Ron Braam (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Ron England (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Russell Dyer (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Shane Griffith (2019–2021) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Taylor Howard (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Tim Henderson (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Heath Garrett (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Jared Powers (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Jim Nowack (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Michael Patterson (2020–2021) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Milan Blake (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Nelson Woodridge (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Tim Dyskiewicz (2020–2021) — Director
  • Former: Adam Lewis (2021) — Director
  • Former: Jack McNeely (2021) — Director
  • Former: John Moses (2021) — Director
  • Former: Matt Wiseman (2021) — Director
  • Former: Tim Poteet (2021) — Director
  • Former: Madison Torrence (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Mickey Torbett (2019–2020) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Mike Callaway (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Phil Cook (2019–2020) — Chair
  • Former: Rodney Fitzgerald (2019–2020) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Bill Estes (2019) — Director
  • Former: Bill Seymour (2019) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Jeff Morelock (2019) — Director
  • Former: Jenice Saint (2019) — Director
  • Former: Matt Ryerson (2019) — President
  • Former: Paulette Madson (2019) — Director
  • Former: Ron Sellers (2019) — Director
  • Former: Steve Ledbetter (2019) — Director
  • Former: Terry Henry (2019) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Verrill Norwood Jr. (2019) — Director

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Compensation Overview

From 2025 IRS filing

Stephanie Linkous — President: $139KStephanie LinkousPresident$139KJennifer Sheeley — VP of Finance: $71KJennifer SheeleyVP of Finance$71K

The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $139K, to Stephanie Linkous (President). 2 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.

Contact

Mailing address: PO Box 193, Cleveland, TN 37364
Phone: (423) 479-2020
Website: https://unitedwayocoee.org

Frequently asked questions about United Way of the Ocoee Region

How much does United Way of the Ocoee Region give each year?

United Way of the Ocoee Region gave $1.6M across 26 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $1.8M across 28 grants.

What is United Way of the Ocoee Region's typical grant size?

United Way of the Ocoee Region's median grant in 2025 was $20,000, and its average grant was $62,486, across 26 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.

Where does United Way of the Ocoee Region give grants?

United Way of the Ocoee Region gives mostly in Tennessee: 99% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Cleveland, TN (20 grants) and Chattanooga, TN (4 grants).

Does United Way of the Ocoee Region give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 26 grants with a stated purpose on United Way of the Ocoee Region's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Community Health" (16 grants) and "Partner Agency" (9 grants).

Who are United Way of the Ocoee Region's largest grantees?

United Way of the Ocoee Region's largest 2025 grantees include Karis Community Health ($380,000), Boys and Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region ($236,000) and The Caring Place ($173,500), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 49% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is United Way of the Ocoee Region?

United Way of the Ocoee Region reported $33.9M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $3.6M.

What does United Way of the Ocoee Region fund?

The organization’s stated mission is to identify community needs, facilitate collaboration, and maximize resources to positively impact its community and surrounding areas. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from United Way of the Ocoee Region?

United Way of the Ocoee Region has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check unitedwayocoee.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.

What is United Way of the Ocoee Region's EIN?

United Way of the Ocoee Region's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 62-0548418. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.

Does United Way of the Ocoee Region accept unsolicited proposals?

Yes, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑

Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.

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